I Thought We Were The Same
by Super Sonic Pizza Delivery
Summary: In the world consumed by flame and devoid of hope, Blaze finds one like herself in the darkness. However, as she soon finds out, this stranger is not what he seems. Mephaze
1. A Meeting of Dark and Flame

PART ONE: A Meeting of Dark and Flame

He was waiting there for me again. I hadn't noticed him the first few times, busy scavenging for food. Even when I did notice him, he seemed to slip away into the shadows once I'd look for him. Hard as I'd search, I couldn't find where he'd go. I let it be; it wasn't my responsibility to care for strangers, after all. I don't know why I'd been as concerned as I was.

Then one day, instead of hiding back in the dark, he stepped forward. His gaze froze me to the core, a dagger of ice to meet the heat of my own inner fire. Those green eyes that pierced into me, that made my heart skip a beat. I could immediately tell that he wasn't like the others I'd met. While they seemed afraid, almost cowardly, he acted completely calm, more like a bystander to the wreckage around him than someone who lived in it.

"So you really are there," I said, lifting my voice to be sure he could hear me, "Any reason you keep staring at me? Have you never seen another person before?"

He didn't respond right away, instead looking at my robes. "I have."

"Then stop staring."

"I will, soon. I'm sorry."

Looking him over, I couldn't place what it was that made me feel unnerved.

"It's just... you remind me of someone I lost long ago."

"Iblis..." I spoke aloud, not looking him in the eye. There wasn't a hint of a question in my voice; after all, everyone had lost so much to the beast. I couldn't remember a time when I even had a family, or anyone other than Silver, really. And even with Silver, I constantly had to protect him from the dangers of this world. He only came into his own recently, learning how to use those unusual powers of his, and even now I constantly fear that one day he'll push himself too far, that he'll fall into the flames, that he'll be devoured like so many others.

I don't know if I could take that.

"Yes," he replied, meeting her tone, "Iblis." His voice made it sound like he was surprised that I knew. I shrugged.

"If he doesn't take people, then the famine or the falling debris will."

His shoulders sank, and he went back to whatever "You aren't gentle about it at all, are you?" he said.

"I see no reason to be. We've all lost people"

A twinge of guilt hit me, and I remembered the few times I'd found others in the wreckage. They'd be so scared, asking for their brothers or their friends. Silver was just like them, once. He asked for his mother, and after he told me what she looked like, I told him the truth; that I saw her fall of the building and burn. He wouldn't talk to me for two weeks after that, only joining me later when he could no longer find food for himself. He's a much more gentle soul than mine, and though I didn't remember my family, I knew enough from him that it was painful to face something like that.

I gripped my arm, bunching the fabric along my arm. "For what it's worth," I said, more out of social obligation than actual intention, "I'm sorry."

He laughed and closed his eyes. "No, you're not." He walked closer to me and took my hand off my arm. I inhaled sharply; his hands felt like ice. How can he possibly be so cold in this heat? "Never have and never will."

It was an odd statement, to be sure, and I couldn't help but wonder what caused him to be so bitter, though I guess I'm not one to talk. "No," I said, "I suppose I don't." His hand on mine didn't make me feel uncomfortable, as I thought it would. It was more surprising, almost comforting.

"Well," he replied, "as long as we're being honest, I would like to see you again."

"Even after that? Why? It doesn't make sense to me."

"Let's just say," he said, bringing my hand close to his face, "you have an inner fire in you that feels very familiar to me." The hand met his skin, and I realized what unnerved me so much about his appearance; he had no mouth.

"Ah!" I exclaimed, though wresting my hand away from him.

"I'd kiss your hand if I could, but I cannot."

"Isn't that custom a bit outdated?" I asked.

"Yes, but something tells me that, you and I, we don't exactly fit here either." And though I knew that he wasn't kissing my hand, a familiar warmth crossed my cheeks. A blush? No, couldn't be. I don't blush. Not me.

"I need to go," I told him, taking back my hand. "I'm here for food. Nothing more."

"I see. But before you go, can I at least have a name?"

That heat, the one in my face. It wouldn't go away. Why? "Blaze," I replied. "Blaze the Cat."

And though he had no mouth, I could somehow tell by something in his eyes that he was smiling. "I see. It is a pleasure to meet you, Blaze the Cat." He began to turn away.

"No, wait," I said to him. "I need your name too."

Looking over his shoulder, he shot me a glance with those green eyes once more before stepping back into the shadows. "I suppose that is fair. My name is Mephiles. Mephiles the Dark."

**((Hello again. This is an unusual ship for me; I've never written for it before. This particular story is in three parts, of which this is the first. It'll all be very short; I'm mostly using this to get out of a nasty writer's block. I hope you enjoyed it; let me know if you do.))**


	2. The Great Unknowns

"Do you ever think about him when we're together?"

I traced my finger along Mephiles' side, drawing a wavy line against the skin, trailing down, down, down. It was one of those things that got him excited, though he would never admit it. Damn pride and all. He shivered at the touch, and I let myself smile, just a little. He was always uncomfortable admitting that he felt much of anything, let alone affection. But he couldn't hide it. Not from me.

It took a while for Mephiles to get used to being around Silver and me. He never talked about his past much after his comments when we first me, but when he'd been around people for too long, he'd get... tense. He said something about being hurt before, and with the way Silver acted around him the first few weeks, I didn't blame him for thinking it'd happen again. When he first came in to see us, Silver attacked him, thinking he was something evil. It struck me as strange, actually; Silver was one of the most naive people I'd ever met, and he'd trusted me instantly, though I had the same detached demeanor. He'd always been alone, so trusting people came naturally to him, but when it came to Mephiles, it was like he had a mental wall.

I think Silver also didn't like how I acted around him. You wouldn't see it unless you had known me for a while, but around him, I was slightly off my game. I tripped and stumbled in his presence. In a world of crumbling buildings and shooting flames, not being completely in control of your faculties is very dangerous. It could even get you killed. Some days, I halfway considered making him leave for self preservation.

Then the night would come, and I'd realize I couldn't be away from him. So it balanced out.

Mephiles drew closer to me, his own arm pressed against my own, and though he was just as cold to the touch as ever, I felt myself heat up. Automatic response. I couldn't help it.

"Ah, there we are," he said, reacting to the flush of heat, "there's that delicious inner fire of yours. Have I ever told you how intoxicating it is?" A small laugh crept in his voice, and blood rushed to my face. _Stop it, _I thought, _how embarrassing._

"You're avoiding the question," I said as calmly as I could, though that emotion - the one I couldn't place, the way I felt for him, and not for anyone else - slipped into my voice and made it waver. "We've been like this for a month now and you've never talked about him again. Why is that?"

His fingers entwined with my own, and his other hand touched my cheek. I was immediately at war with myself; part of me wanted to recoil, to make him stop it. But the other part wanted more, his hands on my neck, my waist...

"You're right," he said, stroking my cheek, "I am avoiding the question." He wouldn't speak anymore after that, and I knew I couldn't do anything about it. Mephiles had a policy, one he was very clear about; he would never lie. He might hide things, or just not talk when he didn't feel like it, but he would never tell me a lie.

"Okay. You won't talk. That's fine." My heart raced at the gentle motions, but I tried keeping my wits about me. We sat in silence for a moment or two before he spoke again.

"I am about to be very forward," he told me.

"Oh? In what way?" I asked. His eyes pierced into mine, but I was unafraid. This is what you're supposed to do with people you trust, right? Be vulnerable? Unsettled, even? It felt wrong and right, all the the same time.

"I was just thinking that you must wonder what it's like," he said, his voice getting lower. I could barely hear him, so I leaned in closer.

"What what is like, Mephiles?" I asked. This behavior was just like him; something always hidden away, like a dark secret. And yet, I wasn't put off by it. I wanted to know.

"How a kiss feels," he said, breathing more heavily than usual, "from one with no mouth."

I don't remember how that night ended. All I remember is being surrounded by darkness, yet always warm. Always on fire. Always consumed in the then unnamed feeling, the one I couldn't place.

Love, perhaps. Or fear.


End file.
